‘He Was Greatness Personified as an Actor’

Hollywood tributes are pouring out for Robert Duvall, who died on Monday at the age of 95.

Duvall’s death was announced on Facebook via a statement from his wife, Luciana Duvall.

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Adam Sandler, who appeared alongside Duvall in the 2022 film “Hustle,” shared a heartfelt remembrance on Instagram. He wrote that the Hollywood icon was “one of the greatest actors we ever had.”

“Such a great man to talk to and laugh with,” Sandler wrote. “Loved him so much. We all did. So many movies to choose from that were legendary. Watch them when you can. Sending his wife Luciana and all his family and friends our condolences.”

Viola Davis wrote on Instagram Threads that it was an “honor” to appear alongside Duvall in the 2018 thriller “Windows.”

“I was in awe,” Davis added, “I’ve always been in awe of your towering portrayals of men who were both quiet and dominating in their humanness. You were a giant… an icon… ‘Apocalypse Now,’ ‘The Godfather,’ ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ ‘Tender Mercies,’ ‘The Apostle,’ ‘Lonesome Dove’… etc… Greatness never dies. It stays… as a gift. Rest well, sir. Your name will be spoken… May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.”

Michael Keaton, who starred with Duvall in Ron Howard’s 1994 workplace comedy “The Paper,” shared a portrait of the “Tender Mercies” star on Instagram with the caption, “Another friend goes down. Acted with and became friends. Shared a great afternoon on my front porch talking about horses. He was greatness personified as an actor. RIP RD.”

“Fallout” star Walton Goggins, who appeared in a small role in 1997’s “The Apostle,” which Duvall directed and starred in, wrote on Instagram in a lengthy tribute, “The celestial light just lost its glow..It certainly did for me. Bobby Duvall, the greatest storyteller of all time just left us.He was my friend. My mentor. I’ve had these photos with me for 30 years. They were taken by the still photographer on the set of THE APOSTLE, the movie he wrote and directed. I was 24. The privilege of getting to work with this man, to know this man is still the most important experience of my life. He was my North Star, my hero.”

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos also remembered Duvall on Instagram. Along with stills of his most famous work, he wrote, “To be a character actor who can steal every scene in some of the best movies ever made and still be a leading man who can carry films big and small is no small feat in Hollywood. Robert Duvall was that kind of an actor and that kind of a star. Today we lost one of the greats- thank goodness we will always have Tom Hagen, Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore, Bull Meechum, Mac Sledge and all of the great characters he immortalized for us.”

Josh Gad wrote in his Instagram Threads tribute to Duvall, “Another day. Another iconic and irreplaceable loss. Duvall was simply one of the greatest to ever do it. From the Godfather films to Apocalypse Now, from The Apostle to To Kill a Mocking Bird, he wasn’t just in film, he defines it through the ages. RIP.”

Scott Cooper, who directed Duvall in “Crazy Heart” and his final film “The Pale Blue Heart,” said in a statement to Variety that he considered “The Godfather” star his “most important artistic mentor.”

“He produced and acted in my first film, ‘Crazy Heart,’ and from that moment forward, read nearly every screenplay I wrote, offering his quiet wisdom and unwavering belief in me,” Cooper said. “He was my fiercest supporter—not with grand gestures, but with honesty, rigor, and love for the work itself. His legacy as one of the true giants of acting is secure, but what I will carry with me most is his generosity, his humility, and the example he set of a life devoted entirely to truth. I would not be the filmmaker—or the man—I am without him.”

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